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Old 04-29-2009, 08:45 AM   #1
donnie
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Default Antenna suggestion

We got a 09 Wrangler to tow behind our MH.
Question is what antenna mount, 2 meter/440, and where to mount it.
Being that its new, Im not to keen about drilling holes in it yet.
Mag mount wont work because the roof is composite.
Any ideas are appreciated.
Heres a pic of it.
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File Type: jpg 0426091737[1].jpg (97.5 KB, 257 views)
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Old 04-29-2009, 09:24 AM   #2
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Many Jeeps come with a 2" towing hitch receiver

Get the proper hitch ball adapter and mount it there

NOTE: when you finally trade in the jeep.. Just move the adapter to the new car, antenna and all
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Old 04-29-2009, 09:31 AM   #3
bnmcgraw
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Talking Antenna 2/70

You might consider the through the glass version on the rear side glass. They do work well and are very cost effective. Tran makes one for both bands for under 30 bucks.
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Old 04-29-2009, 10:23 AM   #4
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I don't know what the back of the new Jeep looks like but here is a picture of where I mounted mine. It is a Diamond ant. and a Radioshack mirror mount for CB that I drilled out to accomidate the antenna mount. If you are squeamish about drilling holes in the new Jeep do a search for a bracket that uses the taillight bolt pattern. I have seen them but I don't remember where. Good luck!

http://www.fulltimerv.us/ham/Jeep%20Ant2.jpg
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Old 04-29-2009, 12:16 PM   #5
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Thought about a the thru the glass antenna.
I know Radio Shack has, or had, one for a scanner that will work for what I want.
The tail light bracket might work as well. THe antenna hole would have to be
enlarged for the NOM mount but that shouldnt be any prob.
Im curious as to how well it would actually work being that the roof is composite construction.
It might also help to mention that the radio is a Yaesu HT.
Appreciate the replies.
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Old 04-29-2009, 08:15 PM   #6
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A fellow ham in Tulsa has a jeep and uses a 2m Larsen, thru-the-glass and has no real problems in the Tulsa area. This the second jeep he has used this type antenna on.

Ken
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Old 05-01-2009, 11:39 AM   #7
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A through Glass might work at VHF, more likely UHF, but frankly.. I"m less than impressed by 'em. And at HF they are a joke.

Another thing I did once with a car was design a "Z" Bracket basically make the / in the "Z" vertical like this | so you the bottom part went under the hood to a fender mounting hole, I removed the fender bolt and replaced with a slightly longer one.

The antenna was mounted to the top part which extended out over the fender

NO HOLES IN RIG

coax went through the firewall in an existing hole

_
|_

That was the bracket's shape
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Old 05-02-2009, 04:53 AM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by wa8yxm View Post
A through Glass might work at VHF, more likely UHF, but frankly.. I"m less than impressed by 'em. And at HF they are a joke.
I have to agree with John. I owned one Thru-the-Glass mount. I was not impressed. If your in a busy metro area and working repeaters that are close by, no problem. I'm out in a rural area for the most part. Closest 2 meter repeaters 23 miles to the south, 30 to the west and even further north and east. Lot's of loss in those type antennas. I had also rather work simplex when I can so I found they are not that great for marginal signals. I don't know what the rf power limits are on them, one of the radios I have runs about 75 watts output.

It's not my choice of antennas.

Jim



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Old 05-02-2009, 10:32 AM   #9
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another thought on the Trailer Hitch mount..... You can get some Hitch places (Those which do welding) to mount a 2nd receiver (I would suggest the 1 1/4 inch size) at the end of the hitch bar. You actually want it "Beyond the tail gate"

SO you have
F|Gate|F
Bumper
1==H==1

Where "F" is the fender and tail light assembly, Gate is the gate You can guess what "Bumper" is 1 is the 1 1/4" receiver and H is the 2" receiver

Then you can mount the antenna off to the side, and again, when you trade in the car, you unlock and pull the receiver pin, pull the adapter (Antenna and all) out of the receiver and walk away.. NO holes, (Well one somewhere but it's hidden and pluggable, it is the one the coax runs through)

If you are worried about the "Wiggle" of the hitch adapter in the receiver I have a very good design for a stablizer (Blue ox design) it's for 2" but you could easily modify it for 1 1/4 inch and the weld shop can make you one

Take a flat hunk of steel wider than the hitch adapter and about 2-3 inches long

Well a small square "Shaft" on one end The other end gets a "Shaft" that is 2x as "Tall" as it is "Deep"

The side view would be something like this

__________
= . . . . . . =
=

(Disregard the . . s)

Now top center drill for a square "U" bolt, one hole each side of the 1 1/4" adapter

IN the drawing above the Right end goes on top of the receiver (or under it)
The left end rests on or under the Adapter

Tighten the "U" bolt and wiggle it won't
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Old 05-02-2009, 02:29 PM   #10
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I have been struggling with this on My MH and Toad combination and was thinking of simply putting a mag mount on the roof and running the coax up to the front of the coach. I guess with the composite roof you would have to consider putting a mag mount on the hood for towing. I dont have have not tried the mag mount solution on the tow vehicle -- anyone tried it?
73
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Old 05-03-2009, 11:53 AM   #11
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Many motor homes do not have a lot of ferromagnetic roof, thus a mag mount won't mag.

However take another look at my last "hitch mount" purposal

For HF you can mount a very heavy antenna (Think Screwdriver) that way, I have a Hustler 4BTV bolted to a bike carrier on the back of my motor home,, It becomes a SBNTV when I'm mobile (Single band no trap, and frankly I have no clue which band) as I use other antennas.

That is for the tow vehicle

For VHF/UHF you could mount a "Mast" consisting of thick wall conduit or other reasonable mast pipe, you need something where you can weld or otherwise attach a "Nut" inside it to receive a bolt up from the hitch adapter

Then on the top end you cap it and drill the cap for a PL-259 type barrel connector/through wall. Drill a hole near the bottom for the coax, pass it up to the cap where you pl-259 it to the feed-through, use a PL-259 mount antenna, do not forget to use Dicor caulk or equal to seal both the top and the cable hole

Again, NO HOLES IN THE CAR
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Old 06-29-2009, 08:29 AM   #12
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I think I found the solution, at least for the Jeep, regarding the antenna.
Im mounted a Diamond K 412 SNMO mount and a Larson 2/70 antenna on the side of the hood.
Seems to do fairly well so far.
May do the same for the MH.
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Old 07-08-2011, 12:16 AM   #13
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Old 07-08-2011, 10:09 AM   #14
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I do not know about your jeep but there are some possible ideas.

Mag mount, carefully GLUE a stainless steel circle to the center of the roof, mke it a 3' circle please.

I used to have a car where I wished not to drill holes,, I had enough clearance between hood and fender (I do not think you do but perhaps somewhere else) that I built a "Z" bracket.. Only make the bends in the "Z" right angles kind of like this

. _
_|

Holes in the two flat parts. One was bolted to the fender, the antenna went in the other Hood went where the period is.

When I got rid of the car I removed and replaced the fender bolt, removing the bracket in the process. Bracket was painted to match the car (Dupli-color)
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Old 11-23-2011, 10:19 AM   #15
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We bought a Jeep Wrangler (2007) several months back to tow behind the MH. I was having a heck of a time determining how to mount a VHF antenna on it. I happened to remember this thread, so did a "Jeep Search" and there it was.

I mounted mine a little different from Donnie. I placed my mount on the rear swing out door. It seems to perform pretty well. I'll have to get some photos uploaded. The forum still comes in handy for some good suggestionsfrom some Great Guys.



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Old 12-12-2011, 06:59 PM   #16
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I think it would look good with a tall whip abou 110" with a large loading coil about 4" in dia and 18" tall mounted on reese hitch. That way you could adjust for different bands.
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Old 12-15-2011, 11:18 AM   #17
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I have a 05 Chevy truck and use a mag mount 2 meter antenna I have found places where I could snake it into the cab without drilling a hole. In my case I found that I can snake it behind the door weatherstripping and get the weather stripping to re-seat with no problem. Look at your wire chases to see if you can get into the interior through them.
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Old 12-29-2011, 10:59 PM   #18
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The biggest problem with the thru glass is grounding. Do not depend on the negative battery connections to make a good RF ground to the chassis - which is your ground plane.

Buxcomm.com has a good selection of mobile ant and accessories. Don't forget the balum ... - because of the ground plane issues - Bucks balums make a huge difference - vhf & hf.

The hitch receiver is a good solution - I use a quick disconnect to remove the antenna when in a high theft area or to let me in the back doors.
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Old 01-03-2012, 02:51 PM   #19
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I use this same mount at the link below on my hatchback Mitsubishi Eclipse, and a good friend of mine, WA8YYE, uses the same one on the tailgate of his jeep. It is completely adjustable to any angle, and works well for him. Anything other than a glass mount will do fine though!

Click Here for the Diamond Trunk/Hatchback/Fender mount
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